CHAPTER XXII
THE AUTOMOBILE WINS
Immediately after breakfast, next morning, "The Automobile Girls" startedin Ruth's car for Naki's house in Pittsfield.
Miss Stuart had decided that it would be best to have Eunice out of theway when she and Mr. Latham made their call on the grandmother.
So the girls hurried off after Eunice.
They were in splendid spirits as they approached Naki's house. No one ofthem doubted, for an instant, that Mr. Winthrop Latham would find littleEunice was his niece.
"You run in and ask the grandmother whether Eunice may take a ride withus, Mollie," Ruth suggested as she stopped her car. "If Naki is at home,ask him to step out here a minute. I want to prepare him for the call ofAunt Sallie and Mr. Latham."
In three minutes Mollie flew out of the house again. She was alone. Therewas no sign of Eunice!
"O girls!" Mollie cried, "Eunice and her grandmother are gone!"
"Gone where?" Bab queried.
"Back to their own wigwam!" Mollie continued. "Last night Ceally says awoman, heavily veiled, came here, accompanied by a young man. They talkedto the Indian woman and Eunice a long time. They told the squaw a man wasin pursuit of her. He would come this morning to take her away. She wasso frightened that Naki and Ceally could do nothing to influence her. Shestarted with Eunice, last night, for their wigwam in the hills. Who doyou think her visitors were?"
"Mrs. Latham and Reginald!" cried the other three girls at once.
"It is all so plain," argued Ruth. "Mr. Latham probably told his sister,last night, that he had seen Eunice, and meant to come here, thismorning, and find out who the child really was. Mrs. Latham and Reginaldthen rushed here to get the squaw and the child out of the way until theycould have time to plan."
"But what shall we do now?" asked Mollie, her eyes full of tears. "I donot believe Mrs. Latham and Reginald will be content with sending Euniceand her grandmother back to their own hill. Mr. Latham could follow themup there. I know they will try to spirit Eunice away altogether. Theywill not wait. Oh, what, what can we do?"
"I know," Ruth answered quietly.
"Have you any money, girls?" she inquired. "I have twenty-five dollarswith me."
"I have twenty with me," Grace replied. "I have ten," declared Bab. "AndI have only five," Mollie answered.
"Then we are all right for money," said Ruth. "Naki," she continued,turning to their guide, who had now come out to them, "I want you to givethis note to Aunt Sallie and Mr. Latham when they come here. It willexplain all. Tell them not to worry. I shall send a telegram beforenight."
Taking a piece of paper from her pocket, Ruth hurriedly wrote a letter ofsome length.
"Now, let's be off!" Ruth insisted.
"What are you going to do now, Ruth Stuart?" Mollie demanded.
"Why, what can we do," Ruth replied, "except go straight up to the wigwamfor Eunice and run away with her before anyone else can."
"Run away with her!" faltered Grace.
"What else can we do?" queried Ruth. "If we delay in getting Eunice outof Mrs. Latham's and Reginald's clutches, they will place the child whereno one can ever find her. Mrs. Latham will then persuade her brother togive up his search. We must save Eunice."
"But what will Aunt Sallie say?" cried Barbara.
"I have written Aunt Sallie," Ruth explained, "that we would take Euniceto a nearby town. We can telegraph Aunt Sallie from there."
"But, suppose, Ruth," Grace suggested, "the Indian grandmother will notlet Eunice go with us."
"Never mind, Grace," Bab retorted, "'The Automobile Girls' must overcomeobstacles. I believe the old grandmother will let Eunice come with us, ifwe tell her the whole story. We must explain that Mr. Winthrop Lathamwants to see Eunice in order to be kind to her and not to harm her, andask the squaw if Eunice is Mr. William Latham's child. We must make herunderstand that Mrs. Latham and Reginald are her enemies, we are herfriends----"
"Is that all, Bab?" laughed Grace. "It sounds simple."
"Never mind," Mollie now broke in to the conversation, "I believe I cansomehow explain matters to Mother Eunice."
By noon "The Automobile Girls" were halfway up the hill that led to thewigwam.
Mollie, who was walking ahead, heard a low sound like a sob. Crouchedunder a tree, several yards away, was little Eunice. At the sight ofMollie she ran forward. A few feet from her she stopped. A look ofdistrust crossed her face.
"Why did you come here?" she asked in her old wild fashion.
"Why, Eunice," Mollie asked quietly, "are you not glad to see yourfriends?"
At first, Eunice shook her head. Then she flung her arms around Mollie'sneck. "I want to give you that strange thing you called a kiss," shesaid. "I am so glad to see you that my heart sings. But grandmother toldme you meant to sell me to the strange man, who looked at me so curiouslyyesterday. So I came back up the hill with her. You would not sell me,would you? You are my friends?"
"Look into my eyes, Eunice," Mollie whispered. "Do I look as though Imeant to harm you? You told me once that if you could see straight intothe eyes of the creatures in the woods you would know whether theirhearts were good. Is my heart good?"
"Yes, yes!" Eunice cried. "Forgive me."
"But we want you to have a great deal of faith in us, Eunice," Molliepersisted. "We want you to go away with us this very afternoon. Take usto your grandmother. We must ask her consent."
Eunice shook her head. "I cannot go," she declared, finally.
"But, Eunice, if you will only go with us, you can buy more pretty goldchains. You can buy beads and Indian blankets for your grandmother,"coaxed Grace. "Who knows? Some day you may even own a big, red bird likeRuth's, and fly like 'The Automobile Girls.'"
Still Eunice shook her head.
"But you will come with us, if your grandmother says you may?" Ruthurged.
"No," Eunice declared. "I cannot."
"Why, Eunice?" Mollie queried gently.
"Because," said Eunice, "to-day I fly up in the sky!" The child pointedover her head.
"Why, the child is mad from her illness and the fatigue of her long walkup here," Grace ejaculated in distress.
But Eunice laughed happily. "To-day I fly like the birds, high overhead.Long have I wished to go up into the big blue heaven away over the treesand the hilltops. To-day I shall fly away, truly!"
The girls stared at Eunice in puzzled wonder. They could understandnothing of the strange tale she told them. Was the child dreaming?
A light dawned upon Mollie.
"Girls!" Mollie cried, "Reginald Latham is going to take Eunice off inhis airship!"
"Can it be possible?" Bab exclaimed.
"Eunice," asked Mollie, "are you going for a ride in the big balloon Ishowed you yesterday as we rode away from the hospital?"
"Yes," Eunice declared. "Last night the young man who came to Naki'shouse talked with me. He whispered to me, that if I were good and did nottell my grandmother, he would take me to ride with him in his great shipof the winds. But he will bring me home to my own wigwam to-night. I willgo with you in your carriage to-morrow. Now, I wait for the man to findme. He told me to meet him here, away from my grandmother's far-seeingeyes."
"Eunice," Mollie commanded firmly, "come with me to your wigwam."
"But you will tell my grandmother! Then she will not let me fly away!"Eunice cried.
"You cannot fly with Reginald Latham, Eunice," Mollie asserted. "He willnot bring you back again to the wigwam. He will leave you in some strangetown, away from your own people. You will never see your grandmother. Youwill never see us again!"
Eunice, trembling, followed the other girls to the wigwam.
"I believe," Bab said thoughtfully as they walked on, "that ReginaldLatham planned to get Eunice away from this place forever. He did notmean to injure her. He would probably have put her in some school faraway. But Mr. Winthrop Latham would never have seen her. Eunice would notthen take half of the Latham fortune from Reginald. J
ust think! Who couldever trace a child carried away in an airship? She might be searched forif she went in trains or carriages, but no one but the birds could knowof her flight through the air."
The old grandmother heard "The Automobile Girls" approaching.
She was standing in front of a blazing fire. With a grunt of rage, theold woman seized a flaming pine torch and ran straight at Mollie.
"Put that down!" commanded Barbara, hotly. "You are a stupid old woman.We have come to save Eunice for you. Unless you listen to us she will bestolen from you this very afternoon. You will never see her again. Thereis no use in your trying to hide Eunice any longer. We know and her uncleknows, that she is the child of your daughter and of Mr. William Latham.You told Mr. Winthrop Latham that Eunice died when her mother did."Barbara had depended on her imagination for the latter part of herspeech, but she knew, now, that she had guessed the truth.
Under her brown leather-like skin the old squaw turned pale.
Then Mollie explained gently to the old woman that Mrs. Latham andReginald were Eunice's enemies; that they wished to be rid of Eunice sothat they might inherit her father's money. She told of Reginald Latham'splan to carry Eunice away that afternoon.
"Now, Mother Eunice," Mollie ended, "won't you let little Eunice go awaywith us this afternoon, instead? We will take good care of her, and willbring her home to you in a few days. But Eunice must see her uncle, Mr.Winthrop Latham. You will not stand in the way of little Eunice'shappiness, I know!" Mollie laid her hand on the old squaw's arm.
But the squaw had bowed her head. She did not notice Mollie.
"It is the end!" The old woman spoke to herself. "I give up my child. Thewhite blood is stronger than the Indian. She will return to the race ofher father. Her mother's people shall know her no more."
"May Eunice go away with us now?" Ruth urged. "And won't you go down tothe village, and stay with Naki and Ceally until Eunice comes back?"
"Take the child, when you will," assented the Indian woman. "She is mineno longer."
"Then come, hurry, Eunice. We must be off," Bab cried.
Eunice got her new coat and hat. Then she flung her arms around hergrandmother, and kissed her in the way Mollie had taught her.
The old Indian woman hugged the child to her for one brief instant; thenshe relaxed her hold and went back into her wigwam.
"The Automobile Girls" and Eunice ran down the hill.
In half an hour they found "Mr. A. Bubble." He was patiently awaitingtheir return.
"Jump into the car in a hurry," Ruth cried. "Put Eunice in the middle. Wehave a long distance to travel before night falls."
The girls leaped into the automobile. It sped away through the autumnalwoods.
"Look, do look up above us!" Mollie exclaimed.
Away above their heads something white sailed and circled in the air.
"It is Reginald Latham in his airship," cried Grace.
"Well, Mr. Reginald Latham," laughed Mollie, "an airship may do thebusiness of the future; but for present purposes I'll bet on theautomobile."
For hours "The Automobile Girls" drove steadily on. The roads were wellmarked with signposts. Ruth wished to make a nearby town away from themain line of travel.
At dusk they arrived in North Adams.
Ruth drove at once to a telegraph office, where she telegraphed to MissSallie: "Safe in North Adams with Eunice. Had a fine trip. Expect you andMr. Latham in the morning. All is well. Do not worry. Ruth."
Ruth and her friends put up at the Wilson House in North Adams. Theyexplained to the hotel proprietor that they were staying in Lenox. Theiraunt would join them the next day.
Five weary girls slept the sleep of the just.